Whew! We made it to Paris! We settled into the Hotel Prima Lepic in Montmartre. We arrived by train before noon and took a taxi to the hotel. It was a perfect, warm, sunny day and the streets were packed with pedestrians. I couldn't imagine having to drive anywhere!
I need to back-track just a bit. The night before, we had dinner at Volpone in Orleans, which was Desmond's favorite place to go for pizza. It was very crowded, with it being a Friday night. We squeezed into our places at a small table in the noisy room and ordered our pizza. French pizza was unlike any I had ever tasted. It was fantastic! My selection was a combination of mushrooms, onion, cheese, and lardons (that tasty smoky, stuff that is like a cross between ham and bacon. It is more flavorful and tender than Canadian bacon) atop a base of creme fraiche. Craig and Des both ordered pizza with a red sauce, lardons, and two or three different kinds of cheese, plus the unusual addition of an egg, sunny-side-up atop the pizza! Desmond urged us to try it, and it was really quite good. There was a bottle of pepper-infused olive oil on each table, and we drizzled it onto our pizza for a surprisingly good punch of flavor on an already delicious pizza. Each pizza was plate-sized and was more than adequate. In fact, Desmond and I could not quite finish ours.
It was late when the three of us returned to the Ibis. We had chosen to walk off some of our meal, and the 20 minute stroll in the cool night air was refreshing. We packed most of our things, setting aside what we would need for the morning. Craig and I awoke before Des, so we walked over to Paul to pick up some breakfast pastries. Craig chose a couple of his favorite fruit-filled pastries, while I picked out a chocolate-filled beignet. We ordered pain au chocolat for our son, but apparently our French got a bit muddled along the way, because we ended up with a couple of pastries that were studded with raisins. Des was surprised when we walked in with breakfast treats, as he had thought we had only gone out for coffee.
Our train ride to Paris was pleasant, with the sun shining in a clear blue sky. On the outskirts of Paris, we passed an area of high-rise apartment buildings in a slightly rundown neighborhood. I saw the usual towels and rugs draped over balcony railings, but had to smile when I saw a bicycle hanging from one of the rails!
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| Gare d'Austerlitz in Paris |
Upon arriving at Gare d'Austerlitz, we had no trouble procuring a taxi to the hotel. It was early, so it wasn't surprising to find that our room was not yet ready. We stowed our luggage in a large closet behind the front desk, and set off to find some lunch. A short distance down the street, we ordered sandwiches from a small stand on a corner near the hotel; panini for Craig and I, and a sausage and cheese crepe for Desmond. As I stepped back to snap a photo, I noticed that we were right next to the Moulin Rouge! We found a bench in the median on the Boulevard de Clichy, and and enjoyed our sandwiches, tossing a bit of crust now and then to the one pigeon, which in no time became 20 pigeons. A cheeky sparrow flitted down into the mob of bigger birds to grab a crumb or two.
After lunch, we wandered around, checking out the sights and avoiding the many sex shops in the district. We shopped for a few souvenirs (NOT in the sex shops, thank you very much!) and then walked several more blocks to the very old Montmartre Cemetery. It was actually quite interesting to see the many old gravestones and the numerous ornate crypts. Some of them resembled small chapels! We saw a beautifully marked tabby cat curled in the sun atop one of the headstones.
This Parisian kitty has found a peaceful, sunny spot for a nap.
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